Take it from the tap: Bagby Beer says Prost!

Oct. 1, 2018 5:55 PM PT

Beer: It’s Festtastic!

From: Bagby Beer

Why: This German-style Oktoberfest beer is true to the Marzen style — amber in color, malty but light in body, with only a hint of brash West Coast hopping. It’s a cheerful, slightly warming beer ideal for crisper days and nights.

Geeking out: 5.9% alcohol by volume.

Seeking out: Head to Bagby Beer’s spacious brewpub at 601 S. Coast Hwy. in Oceanside. Try it with the pork belly poutine and Belgian frites.

Inside out: While owner Jeff Bagby is renowned for his hoppy IPAs, he also has a way with malty brews. His Baltic porter and Irish stout have medaled at the Great American Beer Festival.

Craft Beer

Peter Rowe

Peter is a freelance writer who writes about beer in his bimonthly column Brewery Rowe for the San Diego Union-Tribune. He worked as a reporter and columnist for the San Diego Union-Tribune from 1984 to 2020. A native Californian who grew up in Encinitas, Rowe is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Northwestern University. He is past president of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and a former Fulbright scholar. He has won a few journalism awards, but would trade them all for a chance to avenge his 1994 “Jeopardy!” loss. Married to a terrific woman who has saved him from errors in writing and in life, he has three sons.